Testing the Spyder on public roads brought new data: she was running too hot. Even on a cool morning, ambient temps 80F, driving easy (30-45mph) on flat roads, the oil temperature gauge crept up past 80, past 100 (i.e. 212F), up near 110C. That’s close to 230F, and at that temp VW gurus say you better shut ‘er down and investigate. Good modern oils like the Brad Penn we’re using don’t really mind those temps, and racers run long-term with oil over 260F.
But 230F in a Type 1 means the heads are probably too hot. Hot heads on a Type 1 engine are bad for longevity.
I ran the car for over an hour one morning, took video, and shut down when the gauge got up over 105C.
Along Came A Spyder 